As a teacher and the Duke of Edinburgh Award leader at Nexus International School Singapore, facilitating the Bronze trip to Pulau Ubin was a deeply fulfilling experience for me. It was more than just a Nexus school trip or camping excursion, it was a transformative journey for both myself and the 27 learners who embarked on this adventurous journey.
The Duke of Edinburgh’s (DOE) Award is about imparting essential life skills such as resilience, adaptability, and teamwork to our learners. While Nexus currently offers only the Bronze level of the award, it is a foundational step towards building a strong character and preparing our learners with essential skills that they can use beyond the classroom and beyond life at Nexus.
Exploration & Challenge: Learners Take on the Adventurous Journey
The “Adventurous Journey” phase of the award program is all about exploration and challenge. To be considered an “Adventurous Journey”, our learners must camp overnight in basic accommodation, endure rigorous activities, and master the art of cooking nutritious meals. Working in groups, our learners must also set a research objective that they must complete during the trip. This year, our three groups focused on environmental conservation efforts and studying the island’s unique biodiversity. For example, one group recorded the rubbish they saw at the location to document the effect of human impact on the environment and another looked at how the flora and fauna differ on Pulau Ubin from the rest of Singapore.
What inspired me the most throughout the trip was the resilience and teamwork demonstrated by our learners. Despite facing heavy rain, scorching heat, and the discomforts of outdoor living, they remained positive and supportive of one another.
Preparing for the trip was a journey in itself. Since September, our learners have met with me and the rest of the staff weekly to learn essential skills such as nutritious cooking, tenting, navigation, and first aid. These sessions not only equipped them with practical knowledge but also fostered a sense of teamwork, which proved invaluable during our expedition.
One of the most memorable moments of our excursion for me was the evening spent around the campsite. It was heartwarming to see our learners come together in such a unique setting, bonding over shared experiences and overcoming challenges as a team.
A Journey of Reflection: Learners Take Stock After DofE Adventure
Reflecting with the learners after the trip, a lot of them expressed that they enjoyed the challenge of the trip and had a lot of fun. They also expressed gratitude for what they have at home.
“The Duke of Edinburgh was a challenging yet fun experience in which teams would walk around 40 kilometres during an overnight hike on the island of Pulau Ubin in which we would also have to pitch our own tents and cook our own food. Something I immensely enjoyed was waking up early (05.15) on the second morning to witness an amazing sunrise, with streaks of red, blue and yellow splitting the sky apart. A piece of advice for future teams would be to minimise packing unnecessary heavy items, as the weight of your hiking bag would eventually catch up to you around two thirds of the trip in. Through the Adventurous Journey of the Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award, I was able to build my teamwork skills to successfully pitch our tents and cook food, and also learnt a lot about managing energy during long treks, and knowing when to take breaks.”
– Ryan
“The most enjoyable part of my Duke of Edinburgh trip was the first day’s walk through Pulau Ubin as we weren’t tired and had loads of energy to just have fun and enjoy the trip. The most challenging moment from the trip was probably when we got lost while it was raining really heavily as we didn’t know where to go and it was harder to navigate the area while it was raining really badly. I got better at navigating areas using a map as we had no devices which I believe is a useful skill to have in general even outside of DofE.”
– Ari
As I reflect on our Duke of Edinburgh Bronze trip, I am filled with gratitude for the resilience, teamwork, and personal growth it has instilled in both myself and our learners. The trip would not have been possible without the dedicated staff, who accompanied our participants along the way at checkpoints. Some of the staff even spent the night away from their family to camp overnight in Pulau Ubin. For their tremendous support, we would like to thank Mr Andy, Ms Delphine, Ms Dale, Mr David, Ms Szilvia, and Mr Tom.
Rose Vu, Duke of Edinburgh Award leader and Business and Economics Teacher
As an educator and learner, Rose believes that education is a powerful tool that can allow anyone and everyone to access amazing life opportunities. Learning is a lifelong pursuit and it can happen beyond the classroom.
